CDC says adults need vaccines too

It’s nearly time for school to start again and parents may be thinking of what vaccines the kids need, but health officials say adults need vaccines too.

The Center for Disease Control is offering an online quiz adults can take to find out what vaccines are recommended for them.

Angela Minicuci is a spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Community Health.

“For a number of vaccines the vaccine effectiveness essentially wanes after a number of years and it does vary by vaccine,” Minicuci said, “And as our body ages as we grow older we want to make sure that we have the most up-to-date protection in our body to protect ourselves.”

She said in addition to helping adults stay healthy, vaccines help curb the spread of illness to others.

“As adults we need to make sure that we are protecting ourselves so that number one we don’t get sick,” Minicuci said, “But number two as we are caring for children as we come into contact with children who are much more vulnerable to these diseases that we’re protecting them as well.”

Minicuci said the vaccines adults need depend on things like age, gender and health conditions. Those are things the CDC quiz asks about.

She said one great tool for adults is the Michigan Care Improvement Registry, which is an online resource for patients where they can see what vaccines they have had.

She said not all doctors use MCIR. To access vaccine records through MCIR, patients need to mail or fax a request form to the MDCH.